Filo Io. CO–1–15,136 DISPOSITION In view of the foregoing, this inquiry will be considered closed in San Juan with the submission of this report. ATTACIDENTS 1. Check photostats (19) 2. Copy of letter from Committee on House Administration. CLG:oca (The above-referred-to document was marked "Langston Exhibit 19" and received in evidence.) Mr. TAYLER. At this time, Mr. Chairman Mr. HAYS. Just a minute. Are you entering that whole thing into the record or just those two paragraphs? Mr. TAYLER. The report plus the transmittal letter is being offered. Mr. HAYS. Without objection. I just wanted to clear up what we were putting in here. Mr. TAYLER. The whole exhibit is marked "No. 19," but it includes the report as well as the transmittal letter. I would also offer at this time for admission in the record at the appropriate places Langston exhibits 7 through 18. Mr. HAYS. Without objection. Mr. TAYLER. That is all I have, Mr. Chairman. Mr. DICKINSON. I would like to ask one clarifying question of the witness, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Langston, you related the conversation that you had with the Federal marshal in Puerto Rico as to his efforts in trying to locate and deliver a message to Mrs. Powell. Did he give a reason as to why he was unable to find her, whether or not she was at home or whether he felt she was dodging him or anything of that nature? The WITNESS. He stated that he had been to her home on a number of occasions at odd hours, day and night, in an effort to locate her and the house appeared to be deserted and closed up. He further stated that she appeared to be, and I quote, "hiding out." Mr. DICKINSON. Did he say whether or not he had attempted to learn her whereabouts through her attorneys? The WITNESS. No, sir; he did not state that. As a result of my second conversation with the marshal, he gave me the information that he had made these repeated efforts to locate Mrs. Powell and he had been unable to do so. During that conversation I asked him to contact the attorneys for Mrs. Powell and ask them to respond to our message to them. We had not had a response at that time. We were unable to reach them by telephone at that time. They also appeared to be hesitant about making contact because I talked to the receptionist or secretary in his office, in the attorney's office, and I asked for one and then the other. After some pause she would come back and say he is not in, he will be back in an hour or so. I left word that they call this committee collect. We never got a telephone call direct from them, to my knowledge. Mr. DICKINSON. Was this conversation relative to the lawyers and then your efforts to talk to the lawyers yourself by telephone in response to the first telegram that you received from them? The WITNESS. Yes, the first telegram from them. Mr. DICKINSON. Did you in fact attempt throughout that day to contact them at the address they gave as to where they would be? The WITNESS. I attempted on several occasions, and I believe Mr. Tayler made an effort also to contact them by telephone. Mr. DICKINSON. Is it true you got through to their office and talked to some young lady in the office? The WITNESS. Yes; I talked to someone in the office. It was a rather bad connection. The accents of the people in Puerto Rico, Spanish, were hard to understand and the operator was particularly hard to understand so I wound up talking through the operator direct to the person in the attorney's office. Mr. DICKINSON. And learned they were not available and left word for them to return your call and they never attempted to return your call as far as you know? The WITNESS. That is correct. That is all I have to ask. Mr. TAYLER. Mr. Chairman; for the record, Mr. Langston, would you identify by name the U.S. marshal in Puerto Rico to whom you spoke on the occasions you mentioned? The WITNESS. I spoke one time to the chief deputy marshal. By Mr. TAYLER: Q. Do you remember which occasion that was? A. On the first occasion. Q. That was back on December 20? A. On December 20. I placed a call for the marshal. He was not in. So I talked to the chief deputy marshal. Q. His name? A. Diago Martin. Q. M-a-r-t-i-n? A. M-a-r-t-i-n. On the second occasion I also placed a call for the marshal and he was not available, so I talked to the chief deputy on the second occasion, the same one, Diago Martin. Q. So Mr. Martin was the only one you talked to in the marshal's office? A. That is correct. Mr. TAYLER. That is all I have, Mr. Chairman. Mr. HAYS. Are there any other questions? That is all. Mr. O'CONNOR. We were going to have Mr. Tayler testify conberning his contacts with the U.S. attorney in Puerto Rico. C. WILLIAM TAYLER, having been duly sworn, was examined and testified as follows: By Mr. O'CONNOR: Q. Will you state your full name and your position with the Special Subcommittee on Contracts. A. C. William Tayler, counsel to the special subcommittee. Q. You have just completed an interrogation of Mr. Julian Langston concerning the efforts to obtain the appearance of Mrs. Adam C. Powell before the special subcommittee. Have you had contacts with the U.S. attorney in Puerto Rico concerning Mrs. Powell? A. Yes. Q. Would you relate to the committee how the contacts were made and the nature of the discussions that you have had with him. A. First let me describe the background of my first phone call to the U.S. attorney for Puerto Rico, which was made on December 28, 1966. When I arrived in the committee offices on the morning of December 28, I was shown the cablegram from Mrs. Powell's attorneys which is Langston exhibit No. 13, which stated that they had no information about her scheduled appearance on the 29th other than what they had heard in the press, and they were asking for clarification. Since it was already late in the morning of the 28th and Mrs. Powell's reservations were for a plane leaving San Juan at 6:36 p.m. that day, San Juan time, I undertook to contact these attorneys by telephone in order to get the message through as quickly as possible. I instructed one of our secretaries to place the call and she advised me that she had reached the office of the attorneys for Mrs. Powell and had been informed by a girl on the other end of the line in that office that they were at lunch and would be back at 1:15 p.m., Washington time, and she would have them return my call. My secretary identified me as counsel for the House Administration Committee when she left the message. One fifteen came and went and the call was not returned. At 1:45 I again attempted to reach her attorneys and according to the information given us by a secretary in their office they were not in and they would be back in an hour. At this point I undertook to instruct Mr. Langston to phone the U.S. marshal and have him find the attorneys. The instruction was to find the attorneys and tell them that Mrs. Powell was to be before the subcommittee on the next day and she was to take the 6:35 p.m. Eastern Airlines flight out of San Juan. I then phoned the U.S. attorney for Puerto Rico, Mr. Francisco Gil, Jr., and advised him of our situation, that we were trying to reach Mrs. Powell's attorneys to get her on the plane that evening. I asked him to contact the attorneys as quickly as possible and tell them that she was expected here before the subcommittee on the following morning. I did not hear from Mr. Gil until the morning of the 29th, early in the morning, when he called me and reported a conversation he had had on the preceding evening with one of the two attorneys, Reinaldo Paniagua Diez. He said Mr. Paniagua Diez had informed him that Mrs. Powell had no notification of a scheduled appearance on the 29th other than what the newspapers had reported and the information received by the attorneys on the afternoon of the 28th from the U.S. marshal; that she was unable to make arrangements on such short notice to travel to Washington. Mr. Gil said that he had impressed upon Mr. Paniagua Diez the seriousness of her failure to appear and he urged him to advise Mrs. Powell that she might be subject to a citation for contempt of Congress if she did not appear. Mr. Paniagua Diez, according to Mr. Gil, said that he was not certain that Mrs. Powell was following his advice any longer and he did not know what effect such advice given to her would have. Mr. Gil also reported that Mrs. Powell's correct address is the address on the December 20 cablegram which the committee chairman, Mr. Hays, sent to her, that is, Cerro Gordo, Vega Alta, P.R. But he had been unable to reach Mrs. Powell at that address because the telephone lines were down on that day. I asked Mr. Gil to again contact Mr. Paniagua Diez and advise him that we had made a new reservation for Mrs. Powell at 4:30 p.m. on the 29th on a Pan American flight from San Juan to Friendship Airport. I asked him to urge Mr. Paniagua Diez to get Mrs. Powell on that plane for a rescheduled appearance on Friday morning, December 30, at 10 a.m. Mr. Gil said he would do so. I have not heard anything further from him. Mr. O'CONNOR. I have no further questions. Mr. HAYS. Are there any other questions? (No response.) Mr. HAYS. That is all. (Witness excused.) (Whereupon, at 11:20 a.m. the committee was recessed to reconvene at 2 p.m., the same day.) Mr. HAYS. Mr. Stone, you have been sworn previously. C. SUMNER STONE, JR., having been previously duly sworn, was examined and testified further as follows: Mr. O'CONNOR. Please state your name. The WITNESS. C. Sumner Stone, Jr. By Mr. O'CONNOR: Q. Mr. Stone, you appeared before the committee on December 19, I believe. Is that correct? A. Yes, sir. Q. And in your testimony there was one matter that the committee would like to have clarified. You might recall the question as to whether or not there was a testimonial and dinner in New York for Mr. Powell the latter part of March of 1966. Do you recall that question? A. Yes. Q. I believe your answer to that was that there was no testimonial dinner. A. That is right. Q. The committee has information that on March 25, 1966, there was a ball or dance. A. Oh, yes. Q. For Mr. Powell in New York City. Does that refresh your recollection as to a gathering on behalf of Mr. Powell in the city at that time? A. Yes, sir; the Alfred E. Isaacs Club dance. I am not sure that it was for Mr. Powell or not but it is an annual dance that his club gives. He is coleader of the club. Q. I believe there was also a testimonial for Lillian Upshur. Is that correct? A. Yes. It is not a testimonial as such. It is just an annual dance they have. I don't recall whether they said testimonial dance for him, or her, or what. I know it was an annual dance they have. Q. Who is Lillian Upshur? A. Coleader of the assembly district with Mr. Powell. New York City is divided into assembly districts and they have a leader and coleader. Mr. Powell is the leader and she is his coleader. I don't know the new number but prior to the constitutional change it was known as the 12th Assembly District. It has a new number now. Q: Is Miss Upshur on the Congressman's congressional payroll? A. I don't think I don't really know. I am not too familiar with the congressional payroll. There is a list of names I don't recognize. Q. Does she work in Mr. Powell's congressional office either in New York or Washington? A. She doesn't work in Washington. I don't know about New York City. Q. Do you know whether she might be on the payroll of the Education and Labor Committee? A. I am almost sure she is not. I am pretty sure she is not on the Education and Labor Committee payroll. I cannot say it with any finality. I would have to see the list. Q. In connection with that dance or ball on March 25, 1966, did you go up to it? A. Yes, I did. Q. Did you use an airline credit card to go up to it? A. I can't remember, sir. I know I drove a couple times at that particular time. I am not sure whether I went on the airline credit card. Q. Did anyone accompany you? A. No, sir, I went by myself. Q. Could you relate to the committee the names of other employees of the Washington office of either the committee or Mr. Powell's congressional office that were in attendance that night in New York City? A. Let me see. Mr. Derrickson, Mrs. Wright, Miss Himes. Q. Miss Dorothy Himes? A. Yes. I am just trying to think. There was a dinner before. I think Miss Lewis. Q. Miss Cleomine Lewis? A. Yes, Mr. Odell Clark. There were about eight or nine. I remember definitely being there. Oh, Miss Swann was there. I am not sure whether Mr. Schwartz was there or not. I think so but I can't remember for sure. Q. Do you know how they transported themselves to the dinner from Washington to New York? |